Gallerina on the Scene

Jerry Cabrera, Haven #49, Oil on Canvas

Last night, Mr. D and I got to an enjoy a little grown-up time and headed to Dragon Street for some excellent art- and people-watching.  (My young daughter calls herself a Ballerina and when I actually put on makeup and head out on the town she calls me a Gallerina, hence the title of this post.)  


I wanted to share the art of Jerry Cabrera, whose show opened at Craighead Green Gallery yesterday.    I saw photos of them before we went to the show, but the impact of them in person and the story behind them has left me longing to go back and visit them again.


For his first exhibition with the Gallery, he is presenting long horizontal canvases that are brightly colored with an almost neon feel. The inspiration for this body of work was discovered when he visited the concentration camps of Germany.  At the same time, he was also inspired by the sacredness of light that is felt upon entrance of churches and cathedrals. Cabrera states that “With light color exists, and color itself denotes life.  Light is also associated with knowledge, hope, warmth and energy”. All of these observations or feelings are obvious in each of his paintings. His sensitivity to the environment and mankind is the driving force of each painting.


I am struck by these paintings, they haunted my dreams last night. To me, they conjured up feelings of being alone in a dark room, looking at a sliver of light beckoning from under the door, or entering an old, dark church through slow-moving ancient doors and slowly being bathed in light.